What is the Vestry?
Originally, “vestry” was an architectural term referring to a room within or attached to the church where vestments and other objects used in religious observances were kept. Some were large enough for those wearing vestments to change in which also made them large enough to hold small meetings dealing with the administrative needs of a parish.
Modern day usage of the term refers to the group of parishioners who have been elected by the parish to conduct the secular affairs of the parish and the selection of the Rector. Some provinces of the church allow the Rector and Bishop to appoint members to the Vestry. The Rector is usually an ex officio member of the Vestry. The leading members of the Vestry are the Sr. Warden and the Jr. Warden. In our case, the Rector and the Senior Warden co-chair the meetings. The Sr. Warden oversees the administrative affairs, while the Jr. Warden oversees the physical plant and grounds.
Annually, the whole congregation receives the reports of the Vestry and all other committees, commissions, and ministries of the parish; discusses new ideas and plans for the future; and elects new Vestry members to fill open positions.
Modern day usage of the term refers to the group of parishioners who have been elected by the parish to conduct the secular affairs of the parish and the selection of the Rector. Some provinces of the church allow the Rector and Bishop to appoint members to the Vestry. The Rector is usually an ex officio member of the Vestry. The leading members of the Vestry are the Sr. Warden and the Jr. Warden. In our case, the Rector and the Senior Warden co-chair the meetings. The Sr. Warden oversees the administrative affairs, while the Jr. Warden oversees the physical plant and grounds.
Annually, the whole congregation receives the reports of the Vestry and all other committees, commissions, and ministries of the parish; discusses new ideas and plans for the future; and elects new Vestry members to fill open positions.
St Paul's 2015 Vestry
Back Row (Left to Right)
Ken Martin, Joni Michel, Georgianne Jackson, Bob Cichowski
Sue Johnson, Rosie Behrens, Doug Wong
Front Row (Left to Right)
Fr Brian Palmer, Julian Crocker
Back Row (Left to Right)
Ken Martin, Joni Michel, Georgianne Jackson, Bob Cichowski
Sue Johnson, Rosie Behrens, Doug Wong
Front Row (Left to Right)
Fr Brian Palmer, Julian Crocker
2015 Vestry
Julian Crocker
Sr. Warden, 2016
Telephone Contact: 805 974-1776
Email Address: crockerjulian@gmail.com
Sr. Warden, 2016
Telephone Contact: 805 974-1776
Email Address: crockerjulian@gmail.com
Lou Ann Carter
Vestry Member: 2016
Telephone Contact: 805 927-5583
Email Address: louanncambria@gmail.com
Vestry Member: 2016
Telephone Contact: 805 927-5583
Email Address: louanncambria@gmail.com
Joni Michel
Junior Warden (Co-Chair), 2017
Telephone Contact: 805 927-7608
Email Address: rubymfj@charter.net
Junior Warden (Co-Chair), 2017
Telephone Contact: 805 927-7608
Email Address: rubymfj@charter.net
Doug Wong
Junior Warden (Co-Chair), 2018
Telephone Contact: 805 927-5751
Email Address: rheawong@sbcglobal.net
Junior Warden (Co-Chair), 2018
Telephone Contact: 805 927-5751
Email Address: rheawong@sbcglobal.net
Sr. Warden's Report
Annual Meeting
January 25, 2015
It has been an honor to serve as your Senior Warden for 2014. I want to express heartfelt thanks to my fellow Vestry members who have shown such dedication and willingness to serve and to attend to our tasks during this very busy year. I believe that our Vestry continues to bring hearts full of love and hands willing to work to further the Mission of St. Paul’s of Serving Christ by Loving Others. I especially want to acknowledge Stevely Anderson and Anne Harris-Smith who will be leaving the Vestry after three years of service.
I want to give special thanks to two of our Vestry members, Barbara Hagiwara, our Junior Warden, and Georgianne Jackson, who has assumed the position of Treasurer. Barbara will be leaving the Vestry after two years of dedicated service. She has provided outstanding attention, interest and just plain hard work to our buildings and grounds in this very challenging time of drought. Georgianne has worked with Frank Michel, our former Treasurer, to insure that our financial transactions are completed efficiently and with accuracy. Also, thanks to Bob Cichowski who has stepped up to fill a vacant Vestry position this year. Finally, your Vestry could not function effectively without the support of our Parish Administrator, Michelle Costa. Thank you Michelle!
The By-Laws of St. Paul’s, as well as the Constitution and Canons of the Episcopal Church and the Diocese of El Camino Real, designate the Vestry as the Board of Directors of the “Corporation” that we know as St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Cambria. As such, your Vestry is responsible for both the Leadership and the Management of our Parish. Our Vestry works in partnership with the Rector and defers to the Rector for pastoral, ecclesiastical and spiritual direction of the Parish, while taking a more active role in the secular or business matters of the Parish. We might think of the Vestry’s role as being the Board of Directors of the Parish with the responsibility for setting the direction and Mission of the Parish; providing the structure and resources to accomplish our Mission; to advocate for St. Paul’s and the Christian Church and to be accountable to the members of the Parish. The day-to-day management and administration of the Parish is the responsibility of the Clergy and staff of the Parish.
The Mission of St. Paul’s is: "Serving Christ by Loving Others." The Vestry established four goals as priorities for implementing our Mission for 2014:
Younger Members and Families: To provide programs and initiatives that will attract younger families and children to St. Paul’s.
Pastoral Care: To partner with our Rector to expand and enhance our pastoral care ministry by re-energizing our Lay Eucharistic Minister (LEM) and initiating a Lay Eucharistic Visitor program.
Clergy Leadership Transition: To provide stability and assurance to the Parish and to conduct a prayerful, thoughtful and collaborative search process that is responsive to the needs of our Parish.
Budget Deficit. To reduce the deficit between income and expenditures in the Annual Budget to no more than $5000.
Younger Members and Families. This goal continues to be a challenge for our Parish. Our previous “Parents’ Night Out” event is one example of how we can continue addressing this goal. This is an area that will require continued discussion in 2015.
Pastoral Care. We all experience times when our personal circumstances seem to overwhelm our lives and can create a sense of despair or isolation. This is often the case with illness or medical issues. These times require love, support, contact and prayer from others, especially from our Parish. One of the main responsibilities of the Clergy is to fulfill this Pastoral role. Fr. Fred provided this care until his retirement and we are fortunate that our Pastor Associate Don has been available and is very skilled at meeting this need currently. We emphasized this priority in conducting our search for a Priest-In-Charge. We look forward to partnering with our new Priest to expand our efforts in this area.
Clergy Leadership Transition. With Fr. Fred’s retirement and celebration of his ministry in September, the Parish embarked on a search process for a Priest-In-Charge. The process began by constructing a Parish Profile from the input of all parishioners. In coordination with the Diocese, the position of Priest-In-Charge was posted for potential applicants. Our Search Committee (Betty Malone, Chair, Frank Johnson, Helen Allinder, Stevely Anderson, Leonard Kohout, Marge Sewell, Anne Harris-Smith, Doug Wong and Jim Wilson) reviewed the applications and chose to interview five candidates. The Committee recommended two finalists for the Vestry to meet and interview. After meeting with the two finalists, the Vestry engaged in a prayerful and thoughtful discernment process and issued a call to Fr. Brian Palmer. Fr. Brian accepted the call, was approved by Bishop Mary, and will begin his service with us March 1, 2015. We have been very fortunate to have our Pastor Associate Don who has acted as our Interim Pastor during the five months until Fr. Brian joins us.
Budget Deficit. We continue to project a significant deficit at the close of 2014 of $21,182. This could grow substantially for 2015 depending on several factors. We are covering the deficit by transferring funds from our investment accounts. This is not a wise budget practice on an ongoing basis and the continuing imbalance between our annual income and expenses must be addressed. The good news is that all members have pledged (100%) for 2015 and the total pledged amount of $110,000 is about $4000 more than last year. I thank everyone for prayerfully considering your pledge.
We have an exciting year ahead and I know I speak for all members of your Vestry when we thank you for your love and dedication to the Mission of St. Paul’s.
I want to give special thanks to two of our Vestry members, Barbara Hagiwara, our Junior Warden, and Georgianne Jackson, who has assumed the position of Treasurer. Barbara will be leaving the Vestry after two years of dedicated service. She has provided outstanding attention, interest and just plain hard work to our buildings and grounds in this very challenging time of drought. Georgianne has worked with Frank Michel, our former Treasurer, to insure that our financial transactions are completed efficiently and with accuracy. Also, thanks to Bob Cichowski who has stepped up to fill a vacant Vestry position this year. Finally, your Vestry could not function effectively without the support of our Parish Administrator, Michelle Costa. Thank you Michelle!
The By-Laws of St. Paul’s, as well as the Constitution and Canons of the Episcopal Church and the Diocese of El Camino Real, designate the Vestry as the Board of Directors of the “Corporation” that we know as St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Cambria. As such, your Vestry is responsible for both the Leadership and the Management of our Parish. Our Vestry works in partnership with the Rector and defers to the Rector for pastoral, ecclesiastical and spiritual direction of the Parish, while taking a more active role in the secular or business matters of the Parish. We might think of the Vestry’s role as being the Board of Directors of the Parish with the responsibility for setting the direction and Mission of the Parish; providing the structure and resources to accomplish our Mission; to advocate for St. Paul’s and the Christian Church and to be accountable to the members of the Parish. The day-to-day management and administration of the Parish is the responsibility of the Clergy and staff of the Parish.
The Mission of St. Paul’s is: "Serving Christ by Loving Others." The Vestry established four goals as priorities for implementing our Mission for 2014:
Younger Members and Families: To provide programs and initiatives that will attract younger families and children to St. Paul’s.
Pastoral Care: To partner with our Rector to expand and enhance our pastoral care ministry by re-energizing our Lay Eucharistic Minister (LEM) and initiating a Lay Eucharistic Visitor program.
Clergy Leadership Transition: To provide stability and assurance to the Parish and to conduct a prayerful, thoughtful and collaborative search process that is responsive to the needs of our Parish.
Budget Deficit. To reduce the deficit between income and expenditures in the Annual Budget to no more than $5000.
Younger Members and Families. This goal continues to be a challenge for our Parish. Our previous “Parents’ Night Out” event is one example of how we can continue addressing this goal. This is an area that will require continued discussion in 2015.
Pastoral Care. We all experience times when our personal circumstances seem to overwhelm our lives and can create a sense of despair or isolation. This is often the case with illness or medical issues. These times require love, support, contact and prayer from others, especially from our Parish. One of the main responsibilities of the Clergy is to fulfill this Pastoral role. Fr. Fred provided this care until his retirement and we are fortunate that our Pastor Associate Don has been available and is very skilled at meeting this need currently. We emphasized this priority in conducting our search for a Priest-In-Charge. We look forward to partnering with our new Priest to expand our efforts in this area.
Clergy Leadership Transition. With Fr. Fred’s retirement and celebration of his ministry in September, the Parish embarked on a search process for a Priest-In-Charge. The process began by constructing a Parish Profile from the input of all parishioners. In coordination with the Diocese, the position of Priest-In-Charge was posted for potential applicants. Our Search Committee (Betty Malone, Chair, Frank Johnson, Helen Allinder, Stevely Anderson, Leonard Kohout, Marge Sewell, Anne Harris-Smith, Doug Wong and Jim Wilson) reviewed the applications and chose to interview five candidates. The Committee recommended two finalists for the Vestry to meet and interview. After meeting with the two finalists, the Vestry engaged in a prayerful and thoughtful discernment process and issued a call to Fr. Brian Palmer. Fr. Brian accepted the call, was approved by Bishop Mary, and will begin his service with us March 1, 2015. We have been very fortunate to have our Pastor Associate Don who has acted as our Interim Pastor during the five months until Fr. Brian joins us.
Budget Deficit. We continue to project a significant deficit at the close of 2014 of $21,182. This could grow substantially for 2015 depending on several factors. We are covering the deficit by transferring funds from our investment accounts. This is not a wise budget practice on an ongoing basis and the continuing imbalance between our annual income and expenses must be addressed. The good news is that all members have pledged (100%) for 2015 and the total pledged amount of $110,000 is about $4000 more than last year. I thank everyone for prayerfully considering your pledge.
We have an exciting year ahead and I know I speak for all members of your Vestry when we thank you for your love and dedication to the Mission of St. Paul’s.
Jr. Warden's Report
How to keep St. Paul’s campus looking healthy when there are deer, gophers and no water; that is the fun of it all. The Memorial Garden was completed, the Stations of the Cross placed and planted, plus the stairs and handrail to reach them safely are in place. The sump pump was repaired and the rain gutters cleaned just in time for our first rain. The Security Task Force headed by Frank Schutz installed some additional locks on the doors and windows, along with other vandal deterrents. A water tank was placed in the lower parking lot to insure that the Memorial Garden was kept in proper care.
Thank you to Jane Mettee, Mary Brockman, Mark Kube and especially Michelle Costa and Jeff Rodriguez for your help with the grounds upkeep. It takes about 20 hours a month to keep up with the campus demands.
Thank you to Jane Mettee, Mary Brockman, Mark Kube and especially Michelle Costa and Jeff Rodriguez for your help with the grounds upkeep. It takes about 20 hours a month to keep up with the campus demands.